"I think" - Claim made on Stefan Rupp's Bradford City future | OneFootball

FLW's Bradford City fan pundit has been speaking on owner Stefan Rupp's long-term commitment to the club.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Bradford City Football Club have been heading in a positive direction over the last few seasons under owner Stefan Rupp, and are once again pushing for promotion out of League Two.

The Bantams were bought by Rupp in May 2016, at a time when the club had just recorded a fifth-placed finish in League One.

However, he came in for heavy criticism during his first few years in charge at Valley Parade, having overseen a steady decline before an eventual relegation to League Two in 2019.

After a few campaigns languishing in the mid-division, Bradford have been a consistent play-off contender in the fourth tier over the last two seasons, and are threatening to secure automatic promotion with just five games remaining.

"I think" - Claim made on Stefan Rupp's Bradford City future

We asked our Bradford City fan pundit, Boris Thomson: 'Do you think Stefan Rupp is in it for the long haul at Bradford City, or not?'

Thomson said: "I think there was definitely an argument not so long ago that Stefan Rupp was not the right man for the job to own Bradford City.

"He seemed to not really employ people who had footballing mindsets, and they were more business-orientated. But in the last year, he seems to have turned a corner.

"He's employed David Sharpe as our head of football, which is a role we've never had. So, I think in the present day, I think our opinion of him as fans has gone up quite significantly.

"He's made some decent investments, and I think he is the right man for the job at the moment. He's probably in it for the long haul too, as he's made some decent investments."

Stefan Rupp will surely win over remaining Bradford skeptics with promotion to League One

Having penned an open letter to Bradford supporters in March last year, confessing to a poor season for the club and promising a commitment to improvement this year, Rupp certainly looks to have delivered this season.

"I understand your frustrations and concerns, and share the pain you feel when things do not go our way," he said.

"Hopefully, we can pick up some positive results as we move towards the end of the season, the summer, and the 2024/25 campaign, which I can assure you we will all give everything towards, to ensure it ends how a Bradford City season can and should."

A lot of fan frustration stemmed from the club's lack of success in the transfer market, but additions such as Aden Baldwin, Antoni Sarcevic, Calum Kavanagh, Neill Byrne and Jack Shepherd have all provided the club with sizeable returns on their investments.

With a place in League One now firmly in their sights, should they get over the promotion line this season, then Rupp and his hierarchy will surely have the full backing of Bradford City supporters heading into a potentially exciting future.